Death penalty as a punishment for Louisville Basketball is beyond unlikely

The national narrative is that the Louisville Basketball deserves the “Death Penalty” over the testimony of Brian Bowen Sr. in the FBI trial. I’m here to tell you that-that is nothing more than click bait.

All due respect to Dan Wetzel for covering the ongoing FBI NCAA Basketball federal case and providing the hourly updates via twitter. But the column that was released last evening on Yahoo Sports regarding Louisville basketball and the fallout from Brian Bowen Sr.’s testimony in the FBI investigation is nothing more than click bait.

If you aren’t familiar with what I’m talking about let me fill you in. Dan Wetzel, of Yahoo Sports, covers college basketball and is a fairly well thought of journalist. He’s written several articles in the past that haven’t shed the brightest light on Louisville basketball or the University, but that is neither here nor there.

But it’s his latest piece that takes the cake. Last night in the late hours in the night Wetzel released a column titled “Should Louisville get death penalty after latest revelations in college hoops trial?”

Don’t waste your time reading it. I promise you it’s not a good time. But if you are a fan who believes the death penalty is a possibility, let me try to talk you off he ledge.

Other programs have been covering up years of academic fraud and sexual abuse and this is your column? LAZY. https://t.co/jIASTgJmXO
— Big Red Louie (@TheBigRedLouie) October 9, 2018

The last time the death penalty was handed out to a school was in 1985, a hefty 33 years ago. That was to the football program of Southern Methodist University for multiple recruiting violations that took place while the school was already on probation. That penalty consisted of the following:

Suspension of the 1987 season
Cancelling of all home games in the 1988 season
Ban from bowl games and any games appearing on live TV through 1989
Loss of 55 scholarships over a 4 year period
No off-campus recruiting until 1988
No paid visits until 1989

Let’s talk about why this will never happen again.

First off after SMU was given this treatment it absolutely destroyed the entire Southeastern Conference due to the fact that games against SMU couldn’t be televised. Could you imagine the fall out if Louisville Basketball was not allowed to play an entire season or even not allowed to play on television?

We are on the verge of the multi billion dollar launch of the ACC Network via ESPN and you think anyone involved in that business decision wants a storied program like Louisville to not be on that network? Not allowing Louisville to play or even not to play on television means The ACC, ESPN, and every team in the ACC is losing out on cash. I have not read the network contract but would bet the mortgage that the NCAA pockets some cash there somehow.

Not only would money be lost if Louisville is left off of television but if there is another post season ban the ACC would miss out on millions of dollars. The ACC would earn money for Louisville just making the tournament but even more as it moved along in the tournament so the last thing the ACC wants is for Louisville to be wiped from playing in any way.

Brian Bowen never set foot on the floor as a Louisville Cardinal. Brian Bowen Sr. came to Kenny Johnson with a sob story of not being able to afford the family’s rent at the Galt House. Bowen Sr.is now on court record saying Johnson was “flabbergasted” by his asking for money and Johnson told him Louisville does not have to pay for players.

End game, yes Kenny Johnson made a payment to a committed player’s father a matter of days after the program was placed on probation from the Katina Powell scandal, but we all know how his employment ended at Louisville. After being placed on administrative leave from the University of Louisville, Johnson was terminated on November 22nd after coaching in exactly zero games during the 2018-19 season.

This was dumb and it broke NCAA rules so I am not here to state there should be no punishment but to apply the death penalty would be overkill.

This was a Rick Pitino hired staff member and Rick Pitino is no longer at Louisville. Pitino’s boss, Tom Jurich is also no longer at Louisville, and his boss former President James Ramsey is no longer at Louisville.

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Pitino’s entire staff was also let go and after stepping in for a year interim head coach David Padgett is no longer on the sidelines. Louisville cleaned house as it should. The new regime at Louisville deserves a change to right the wrongs of the past staff and taking away the chance to play to these new coaches and these players that had nothing to do with the Bowen case do not deserve to have their college careers taken from them.

To give Louisville the death penalty over a scandal in which they were punished severely and for a man who has already admitted under oath that he did things behind school’s backs, without his son and wife knowing, while also not being able to “recall” other situations – proving he has no credibility, would be an injustice.

With schools like Baylor, Michigan State, and North Carolina omitting far more egregious acts while attempting to cover them up for years, hammering Louisville would only go to show why the NCAA should be blown up completely.

Yes, Louisville broke the rules while already on probation. There is no denying that but allowing Kenny Johnson the man that broke the rules to coach at LaSalle while blowing up Louisville basketball does not sound like a fair course of action for the NCAA to take.

The current day Louisville is not the Louisville that committed these infractions. Louisville is the only school implicated in the FBI scandal to take any action at all by cleaning house, that has to account for something.

Give Kenny Johnson a 10 year show cause, take away scholarships from the University, but the thought of punishing a school that has gone leaps and bounds to prove the past is the past and anything and everything that can be done to improve has been done, would be the worst possible action for the NCAA.

Thanks for listening – rant over.